Bad Blood Book Review

Title:

Bad Blood

Author:

E. E. Smith

Published:

2014, Phoenix International

No. of Pages:

194

Cover Price:

$3.99 US (Kindle Edition)

Alexis Smith, a young private investigator, is hired by the wealthy Faraday family to investigate some mysterious happenings in Bad Blood, by E.E. Smith. Alexis has just returned from England where she barely escaped with her life while working a case, and is concentrating on getting her business – Alexis J. Smith, Discreet Inquiries - back to normal. Her office is housed in a dilapidated old building awaiting the wrecking ball, and she is required to find new office space immediately. Just as she gets to the bottom of the family mystery, Lexie is summoned back to England to work with MI5, England’s equivalent to the CIA. She isn’t happy about this, but feels obligated, since during her last visit, she got her English boyfriend, DI Harry Hawkins, in trouble with his employer, Scotland Yard.

Once Lexie gets to England, she must pose as a student at St. Edmunds College in Cambridge to spy on a favorite professor, Dr. Gore, from her college days, who has been brought from the states to teach a class and is rumored to have communist ties. Since the story takes place in 1947, this is a serious charge. Her room in the dorm is bugged, but Harry takes her to visit his sister and her husband where she can talk freely and is reunited with Daisy, a cute little dog who once belonged to Lexie’s late friend and true love, Frank Faraday. Lexie discovers that the professor at the college is an imposter and takes Daisy with her to find the real Dr. Gore, who has been kidnapped.

Bad Blood is a fast read – it actually can be read cover to cover in an afternoon – and it is a nice change from the suspense novels that contain graphic violence and murders. There is suspense, however, and Lexie seems to be in constant danger. Dr. Gore has developed a formula for synthetic blood and several spy agencies are trying to get their hands on it because it will be worth millions of dollars. Of course, none of the agencies are trying to get it legally or ethically, so as Lexie gets involved, her life as well as Dr. Gore’s is in eminent danger.

Alexis Smith is a likeable character, and, while her specialty is finding missing persons, she is also good at thinking things through and discovering the truths that will thwart the bad guys. While this is a light, “feel good” novel, it may not be enjoyable for hard-core thriller readers who require edge-of-your-seat suspense. It could, in fact, be classified as a suspenseful “cozy.” I, for one, will be seeking out the next book in the series as soon as it comes out, and plan to read Smith’s previous novels because they are well-written and fun.

Special thanks to P.J. Nunn from Breakthrough Promotions for supplying a copy of this book.